The Dark Knight
The Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed, co-produced, and co-written by Christopher Nolan. Featuring the DC Comicscharacter Batman, the film is the second part of Nolan's The Dark Knight Trilogy and a sequel to 2005's Batman Begins, starring an ensemble cast including Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Heath Ledger, Gary Oldman, Andrew Stewart- Jones, Anne Hathaway and Morgan Freeman. In the film, Bruce Wayne/Batman (Bale), Police Sergeant Ethan Bennett (Jones) and District Attorney Selina Kyle (Hathaway) form an alliance to dismantle organized crime in Gotham City, but are menaced by a criminal mastermind known as the Joker (Ledger) who seeks to undermine Batman's influence and create chaos. Plot A gang of criminals rob a Gotham City mob bank, double-crossing and murdering each other until there is only one left: The Joker, who escapes with the money. Batman, Assistant District Attorney Selina Kyle, and Sergeant Ethan Bennett form an alliance to rid Gotham of organized crime, which is what Commissioner James Gordon approves of. Bruce Wayne decides to support Selina's career, he believes that with Selina as Gotham's protector, he can give up being Batman and lead a normal life with her. Mob bosses Salvatore Valestra, Anatoly Kynavez, and Tobias Church hold a video conference with corrupt accountant Jin Fang, who has taken their funds and fled to Hong Kong. The Joker interrupts, warns them that Batman is unhindered by the law, and offers to kill him in exchange for half of their money, but Church puts a bounty on the Joker instead after he insults him. After escaping and smuggling himself as a corpse, the Joker kills Church and takes over his gang. Anatoly convinces the mob to take the Joker up on his offer. Selina arrests the entire mob, while Batman finds Jin Fang in Hong Kong and brings him back to Gotham to testify against them. The Joker threatens to keep killing people unless Batman reveals his identity, and starts by murdering police Captain Gillian Loeb and the judge presiding over the mob trial. The Joker also tries to kill Mayor Hamilton Hill, but Gordon sacrifices himself to stop the assassination. Bennett learns that Selina is the next target. Bruce decides to reveal his secret identity. Before he can, however, Hill announces he is Batman. Hill is taken into protective custody, however, the Joker appears and attacks the convoy. Batman comes to Bennett and Hill's rescue and Gordon, who faked his death, arrests the Joker. Bennett has Selina are escorted with Michael Wuertz and Renee Montoya, detectives on Valestra's payroll. Batman interrogates the Joker, who reveals that Selina and Bennett have been trapped in separate locations rigged with explosives. Batman races to save Selina, while Gordon goes to save Bennett. Batman arrives at the building and saves Selina. Both buildings explode, however, Bennett transforms into a clay-based creature due to there being chemicals in the place he was held. The Joker escapes the jail with Fang. Coleman Reese, a lawyer at Wayne Enterprises, deduces that Bruce is Batman and tries to go public with the information. After observing the unpredictability of the Joker, Valestra informs the Joker's location to Commissioner Gordon. The Joker sets fire to the mob's money, burning Lau alive in the process, and murders Anatoly. Not wanting Reese's revelation to interfere with his plans, the Joker threatens to destroy a hospital unless someone kills Reese. Gordon orders the evacuation of all the hospitals in Gotham and goes to secure Reese. Bennett discovers his transformation after he accidentally kills a prostitute; horrified and stricken with guilt, he plans to commit suicide. Just then, he is approached by the Joker, who manipulates him into seeking revenge for what happened. The Joker then destroys the hospital and escapes with a busload of hostages. Bennett goes on a killing spree based on a coin flip and targets people he holds responsible for the corruption in the GCPD, including Wuertz who is later killed and Montoya who is eventually spared. While in Valestra's car, Bennett shoots his driver, presumably killing Valestra as well. After announcing Gotham will be subject to his rule come nightfall, The Joker rigs two evacuating ferries with explosives; one containing civilians and the other containing prisoners. He says that he will blow them both up by midnight, but will let one live if the passengers of either boat blows up the other. Batman finds the Joker with a sonar device that spies on the entire city, with the reluctant help of Lucius Fox. Both the civilians and the prisoners refuse to kill each other, and Batman apprehends the Joker after a brief fight. Before the police arrive to take the Joker into custody, he gloats that Gotham's citizens will lose hope once a cop's killing spree becomes public knowledge. Gordon arrives at the building where Bennett was transformed into Clay Face and Bennett ambushes Gordon, blaming him for his transformation and the corruption in the GCPD. Batman saves Gordon and convinces him to cover up the crimes that Clay Face committed by saying he is responsible. As the police launch a manhunt for Batman, Gordon destroys the Bat-signal, Fox watches as the sonar device self-destructs, and Selina refuses to have anything to do with Bruce due to choosing her over Bennett. Cast * Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne/Batman * Michael Caine as Alfred Pennyworth * Heath Ledger as the Joker * Gary Oldman as James Gordon * Andrew Stewart-Jones as Ethan Bennett/Clay Face * Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle * Michael Freeman as Lucius Fox * Monique Gabriela Curnen as Renee Montoya * Ron Dean as Michael Wuertz * Stephen Amell appears as Hamilton Hill * Ng Chin Han portrays Lau * Eric Roberts as Salvatore Valestra * Ritchie Coster as Anatoly Kynavez * Joshua Harto as Coleman Reese * Melina McGraw as Eileen Gordon * Nathan Gamble as Tony Gordon * Michael Jai as Tobias Church * Colin McFarlane as Gillian B. Loeb * Mike Engel as Gotham Cable News reporter * Keith Szarabajka as Gerard Stephen * Nydia Rodriguez Terracina as Judge Janet Surrillo * William Fichtner as Richard Daniel * Cillian Murphy as Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow * Senator Patrick Leahy as himself * Matt Skiba as himself * David Dastmalchian as Thomas Schiff Category:Batman Films